There are various ways to raise money for the cause you have chosen. Donations, of course, are the most common way, but often not for profits are aided by sponsors, too. In order to attract sponsors, however, the organisers of the charity need to understand that there is a difference between donating and sponsoring. In the first case, a person gives unconditionally and without expecting anything in return for you, while in the second, the ROI /Return of Investment/ and the benefits are what makes a company invest with you.

This is the main reason why many charities fail to co-operate with prospective sponsors – they don’t understand that when it comes to benefits, it is not just the benefits for the charity that matter. On the contrary, a sponsor is likely to invest in you if they see how that will help their company, how it will help them stand out, attract attention to themselves, make profit or be advantageous in any other way.

Another obvious problem is charities underestimating the power of digital marketing. Spending insignificant and hardly sufficient sums for advertising online is not going to help.  If you want a serious Return on Investment, you need to arm yourself with effective tools in the online war for influence.  This is a practical way to establish yourself as the organisation deserving of sponsorship.

When doing that, make sure you give fair chance to everyone to participate and contribute to your cause, not only to younger people. The popular belief is that online charities are more likely to succeed by attracting the new generation of givers, so they neglect the already established and functioning donors and lose a lot exactly this way.

Being a successful not for profit or charity means understanding what your sponsors really want. When convincing your sponsors, don’t use phrases like ‘This will help us …’ Instead, use phrases like ‘It will benefit you by…

Sponsorship is a two-way street. Make sure that you plan for two-way benefits before you even think of approaching a potential sponsor.